Erickson Transport Corp, Springfield MO, ceased operations on February 10 after 60 years in business as a tank truck carrier. Jim Erickson, company president, said the carrier was done in by a sputtering economy, surging fuel costs, and ever-higher liability and health insurance premiums.
Erickson stressed that the company is liquidating, but every effort is being made to take care of customers and creditors. The fleet will be auctioned off.
Most revenue operations have stopped, and management is in the process of retrieving equipment from around the country. Shutdown efforts should wrap up by the end of February. The fleet consists of 88 tractors and 150 tank trailers, and operations were conducted out of terminals in Springfield MO, Joliet IL, Charlotte NC, and Houston TX.
A member of National Tank Truck Carriers since 1974, Erickson Transport was founded in 1943. Over more than half a century, the company hauled a variety of liquid chemical and foodgrade cargoes. Revenues in 2002 were approximately $15.9 million.